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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. hand — help
  4. march — the month
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. cap — a hat
  7. ground — crushed
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. press — newspapers
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. press — a publisher
  13. march — music
  14. press — to push
  15. cap — a lid
  16. tube — the underground
  17. pitch — completely
  18. hand — in cards
  19. march — the month
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. ground — the earth
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. cap — of ice
  24. tube — a container

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com